Norton Asks Department of Defense to Clarify Policy on Department’s Use of Transponders on Aircraft in the National Capital Region
WASHINGTON, D.C. – After receiving recent reports that the Department of Defense (DoD) has asserted that ADS-B, a type of transponder used to communicate GPS data and project aircraft trajectory, is enabled on DoD helicopter flights in the National Capital Region, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) wrote Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth to reconcile the reporting with contradictory information she received nearly two years ago.
In 2023, the DoD responded to an inquiry from Norton with a letter stating that the Army Aviation Brigade at Fort Belvoir executes 100% of its missions with the ADS-B transponders disabled.
A U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter from the Army Aviation Brigade at Fort Belvoir and a passenger plane collided in D.C. airspace on January 29, killing 67 people.
“These transponders are critical to flight safety, particularly in crowded D.C. airspace,” Norton said. “They broadcast several types of data to other aircraft and air traffic control, including, importantly, the state of an aircraft’s navigation systems, and will automatically alert other aircraft and air traffic control towers if the aircraft is experiencing problems with its navigational systems. In the wake of the tragic crash in D.C. airspace on January 29th, it is imperative that DoD clarify its policy for the use of these transponders for DoD aircraft in the National Capital Region.”
Norton requested a response clarifying DoD’s policy and practice on the use of such transponders during helicopter flights by February 28, 2025.
February 14, 2025
The Honorable Pete Hegseth
Secretary
U.S. Department of Defense
1400 Defense Pentagon
Washington, DC 20301
Dear Secretary Hegseth:
Since the tragic midair collision that killed 67 people near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, I have received reports that the Department of Defense (DoD) has asserted that Extended Squitter Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) transponders are enabled on DoD helicopters on flights in the National Capital Region (NCR). However, in a 2023 letter to me, DoD indicated that the “Army Aviation Brigade at Fort Belvoir and Marine Helicopter Squadron One execute 100 percent of their missions with the ADS-B off.”
I request a written response clarifying DoD’s policy and practice on the use of ADS-B during helicopter flights in the NCR by February 28, 2025.
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